Brian Wallace, Founder & President, NowSourcing

Never before has the United States’ nursing home facilities faced such a serious staffing shortage.  Nursing home employment increased every year for the last decade before falling to record lows during the pandemic. Between June and September 2021, 86% of nursing homes have reported that their staffing situation has grown worse while 99% of nursing homes currently face a staff shortage.  Seven in ten nursing homes are having a tough time hiring new staff members.  

Ohio nurses in particular are in high demand as the state ranks third in highest number of nursing homes of any state.  In fact, Ohio nursing homes reported a greater shortage of nursing assistants than any other state in 2020.  The demand for qualified nursing staff continues to grow in Dayton and Cincinnati, which are also where employment in education and health services both increased by around 13% from April 2020 to April 2021.  

From February 202 to January 2021, nursing home staff ratios actually fell by 32%.  78% of nursing homes that lack enough staff are worried the shortage will force them to close.  There are several costs of low staff numbers, including less help at mealtimes, fewer baths and showers, less frequent repositioning to prevent bedsores, more frequent wounds, and increased staff stress and turnover that ultimately means nursing home residents receive less care.  

What exactly is causing the shortage?  One factor is that 62% of healthcare workers have experienced increased stress due to the COVID pandemic, including loss of sleep and increased drug or alcohol use.  Constant staff shortages and the added pressures of the pandemic have pushed staff to quit.  Nurses were already retiring faster than replacements could be trained before the pandemic even started.  Another factor is that just 56% of Ohio’s nursing home staff are vaccinated against COVID-19, which is the seventh lowest vaccination rate nationwide, while 58% of nursing home employees face increased risk during the pandemic without receiving any extra pay.  New vaccine mandates could possibly lead to more staff walking out the door.  

There are few solutions that can help solve the staff shortage, but none of them are easy to implement, such as providing better conditions to reduce burnout and employee turnover.  Most nursing homes are unable to provide higher pay or increased benefits as seen in June 2021 when 84% of nursing homes were losing revenue due to fewer patients being brought in from hospitals as costs increased due to the need for increased safety measures.  As a result, new avenues for staff recruitment are needed.  This could include increasing training opportunities for new workers, adding nursing programs to high school offerings, or creating new green cards to encourage new applicants.  

Although the staffing shortage at nursing homes will continue to persist in the near future, there is hope in the new generation to help provide the much needed support.

About the Author: Brian Wallace is the Founder and President of NowSourcing, an industry leading infographic design agency in Louisville, KY and Cincinnati, OH which works with companies ranging from startups to Fortune 500s. Brian runs #LinkedInLocal events, hosts the Next Action Podcast, and has been named a Google Small Business Adviser for 2016-present. Follow Brian Wallace on LinkedIn as well as Twitter.